Graduates hear Barco and Gray

By Annabelle Boyd

The "recent, rapid, and irreversible" changes sweeping through Eastern
Europe and Latin America dominated the speeches at MIT's 124th commencement
on June 4.

Under sunny skies, 1712 students received degrees and were encouraged by
speaker Virgilio Barco '43 "to open their eyes to a new world . . . beyond
the myopia of the Cold War, a world where economic growth and technological
innovation will be of critical importance."

Barco, who is president of Colombia, touched on several issues he felt
were vital to "North-South" relations: the environment, the continued
prevalence of free market economies, the reduction of defense spending by
the superpowers, and the obligation of First World nations to their
struggling Third World neighbors.

Barco likened his graduation from MIT in 1943 to that of the class of
1990. "So much was happening in the world . . . No one was sure what
tomorrow would bring. All of this must seem strangely familiar to each of
you with the rapid rate of change in Europe and around the world.''

Barco related his belief that "a strong foundation in the humanities,
economics, and technology" is the "key" to managing change. "Now these
enormously powerful tools of change rest in your hands, and the fate of
future generations depends on your ability to put to good use all that

you have learned," he told the graduates.

Barco also addressed the "global celebration of democracy." He urged the
graduates to recognize that the "tide of democracy" was not only flowing
through Europe, but Latin America as well.

"Ten years ago, most countries of Latin America suffered under the
weight of dictatorships. Just look at the change. Peru returned to
democracy in 1980, Bolivia in 1982, Argentina in 193, Brazil in 1985,
Chile, Nicaragua, and Panama in the last year alone.

Barco reminded the graduates of their obligation "to ensure

the fostering of global economic growth." He said this could best be
achieved by "guaranteeing access of Latin America's democracies to economic
prosperity and change."

In his closing, Barco urged the graduates to recognize their "special
responsibility."

"As you look to the future, I ask one thing: do not let today's flowering
democracies wither on the vine. Extend your arms to those who have for too
long lived in oppression, in fear and in poverty. Like all newborns, these
infant democracies around the world may at times falter and stumble,
hesitantly trying their first steps. Yet they must prevail. This is our
first duty. All of us, especially you here in the United States, now have
the opportunity to build in peace what is often unavailable by force. It is
our collective responsibility to ensure that this opportunity does not pass
us by."

Paul E. Gray '54, in his last commencement address as president, also
discussed the collapse of the Soviet empire and transformations occurring
in Europe.

"These changes were conceived in the irrepressible human striving for
freedom of thought and action, for political self-determination, and for
ethnic and spiritual identity and respect. And they were borne of the
extraordinary failures of the command-and-control model of state
socialism," Gray said.

The destruction of the environment and the development of a global
economy were stressed

by Gray as vital in this newly-founded world of democracy.

"Stateless corporations, whose research, development, manufacturing, and
marketing activities transcend national boundaries, are on the rise, And as
they grow, they -- and the changes that they generate -- will influence
national structures and organizations, will challenge long-held cultural
attitudes and beliefs, and will place a premium on the ability

to think and act in transnational dimensions," Gray told the graduates.

In dealing with the rapidly unfolding future, Gray urged graduates to be
flexible. "Without the inclination and ability to be flexible, to be open
to new ideas and changing times, to adapt and grow -- in short, to learn --
we become trapped. Trapped by outdated ideas, by the fear of difference, or
of change -- trapped in prisons of our own making. The key to that prison
is an open mind, an honest intellect and a courageous and compassionate
heart."

Several graduates adorned their gowns with yellow and green ribbons,
signifying their support for the African National Congress and their desire
for MIT to divest. Other students taped the words "divest now!" to their
caps. The Coalition Against Apartheid carried a black coffin and banged a
drum in protest of MIT's involvement with businesses involved in South
Africa.

Senior class president Joseph R. Babiec Jr. '90 presented Gray with
$16,000 for the clock tower to be constructed in the Julius